Metro drive-thru branches on the way but would you bank through your car window?

When you think of a drive-thru the most likely thought to pop into your head is American fast food chains where you can buy burgers and fries in a paper bag through the window of a car.

But the drive-thru could soon be associated with something entirely different – banking.

On 3 May 2013, Metro Bank will open a drive-thru bank in Slough, Berkshire. Its chief executive, Craig Donaldson, is enthusiastic about its potential to capture the imagination of those who live and work in the area.

Drive-thru: This artist's impression shows how the store will look - with the drive-thru facility at the side

Metro Bank is no stranger to innovative ways to try and help make banking a more pleasant experience. For example, each ‘store’ – it prefers the term 'store' to 'branch' - has customer toilets, free money counting machines and dog bowls for those who can’t part from their canine friends.

Even the way each store is designed is pleasing to the eye. For example, all stores are situated on a corner location and have double panelled glass windows, making it easy to see in – ‘it’s part of us being clear and transparent,’ Craig tells me when I met him in Metro’s shiny Holborn offices.

And when it comes to products, Metro Bank really does keep it simple. One current account, one personal loan product, one mortgage is a continuous theme, while a rates board showing what savings accounts are currently paying adds to that transparent theme Craig talks about.

Metro’s first drive-thru will be a section of the Slough branch created alongside the traditional banking premises. It will enable motorists to drive up to the bank and carry out transactions without leaving their vehicles.

McDonald's: A common drive-thru establishment

Craig says: ‘We’re very excited to bring our first ever drive-thru to Slough. Offering cashier services to customers from the comfort of their cars will bring a whole new level of convenience to customers, many of whom will drive past the store on Farnham Road regularly.

‘Our job is to make banking easy for everyone and we’re confident that with the drive-thru lanes, combined with the great in-store customer focused services that we offer, we will achieve it.’

Drive-thru banking has been trialled in Britain before.

Barclays had a drive-thru cash machine in Hatton Cross over ten years ago, but it didn’t survive past the six month trial period. Then, in 2007, HSBC announced it was to trial a number of drive-thru banks. However, the pilot scheme didn’t make it off the ground.

But the Metro boss believes the concept will work in Slough, with people being able to withdraw cash, pay in and perform other tasks from their car as they drive to and from work on the busy dual carriageway.

With a store opening in Guildford today, Slough will be its 18th outlet – and the first to test the drive-thru facility. If it is successful, it could become more common across Britain.

Drive-thru banking is popular in the US – although it is believed to have waned in popularity in recent years due to queues and the rise of online banking.

Metro has already recruited 25 staff to Slough, adding to about 700 new jobs it has already created nationally. Craig says it is receiving hundreds of applicants for the bank every day. All Metro branches are open seven days a week.

HAVE YOUR SAY: Would you use a drive-thru bank? Have you used a drive-thru bank in other countries in the past? Do you think the Metro drive-thru will be a success? Let us know in the comments section below...